The Real Big Three
by BlueHalcyon
Summary: Percy Jackson was supposed to die, but someone else was killed instead. Craving revenge he joins the very person who ordered his death, with plans to take down the Olympians. Now being co-authored by PhantomWhispers.
1. Chapter 1

The ocean was mad. I mean furious. The water that looked black in the night was thrashing and churning. Waves were beating against the shore, and running all the way up the beach, stopping just in front of the line of houses. Rain poured down, causing the sea to become even more wild than it already was. Wind was sweeping off the ocean at speeds that threatened to knock the previously mentioned houses down.

One boy stood on that beach, in the middle of the mass chaos with his arms raised in the air. Sometimes the water would get so high as to submerge the boy, but he never moved from that spot. This event was taking place on the coast of California. The boy had his mouth open like he was screaming, but no sound was audible due to the noise the waves were making. Who is this boy? The Prince of the Sea. For weeks now the ocean had been obviously upset. For weeks now this boy had been upset. Up until now nothing this drastic had happened, because up until now the boy hadn't set foot in the sea.

Hours passed when finally the boy's arms lowered and his lips closed back together. He slumped onto his knees as the waves became gentle and the water stopped thrashing. The rain and wind ceased as if they were never there to begin with. The ocean was at rest. The boy was tired. He had unleashed his wrath through the sea. Now all he had left to do was cry, for he felt as if someone had torn him apart. Which, in a way, someone had.

As the strange boy sat, crying, on the beach, two figures appeared and ran to the boy. One was a girl with spiky black hair and electrifying blue eyes, maybe fifteen years of age. The other a boy, with shaggy black hair and endless black eyes, a year or two younger than the girl. They surveyed the beach and the boy, maybe seventeen or so, before them. He had black hair, a little shorter than the newcomer's, and dull green eyes that seemed to hold pain and misery beyond his years. If you looked close enough, though, you would be able to see that those same eyes had once been bright and shining. You would see that those eyes had once held unimaginable joy.

The girl layed a hand on the green-eyed boy's shoulder. For the first time he turned and saw the two teenagers standing behind him. For the first time they saw his tear-stained face and puffy red eyes. The boy with the black eyes gave a half-hearted smile and opened his mouth to speak, when the crying boy beat him to it.

"How did you guys find me?" his voice was hoarse.

The girl sat next to him, "Well, massive hurricane warnings on the west coast? I figured it had to be you, since the last time anyone saw you, you were diving into the ocean with a murderous look on your face. It was either you or your father. We were worried, Percy."

The boy, now known as Percy, nodded his head. "Well, thanks, I guess. For coming. At least I still have two friends."

"I love you like a brother, Perce, so it's only fair I tell you that the rest do indeed hate you." the other boy said.

"Nico," the girl hissed, "don't make it worse." Nico held his hands up in surrender.

"It's ok, Thalia." Percy said to the girl. "I didn't expect them to care." As Percy started thinking of what drove him away from his family and friends, the sky darkened and the ocean became violent once again.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down, Perce!" Nico cried. Percy's eyes shut for a second and when they opened, the sea was calm. Thalia and Nico sighed in relief. Even though Thalia would often gloat about how she was stronger than Percy, she knew-everyone knew- that there was nothing scarier than the wrath of the sea.

"Sorry..." Percy murmured. The other two pulled him into a hug. Even though technically they weren't related since gods don't have DNA, Percy loved being able to call them his cousins.

Nico pulled away from the group hug, "If you want, I'll go kill him for you, Percy."

"Yeah," Thalia said. "and I'll kill her."

"No, guys. There will be no killing."

"But they almost killed you!" Nico protested.

Percy smiled. "Keyword: almost. Trust me, they will get what the deserve. The Fates made sure of it, but killing them is not an option. We are not murderers."

His cousins laughed. "Ok, but the gods must also be punished. I don't care if we are their children, we have to punish them. They don't believe we are strong, but we will prove them wrong." Thalia said. Nico and Percy nodded in agreement.

They put their hands together, and on that beach in California, the children of the Big Three made a vow. A vow to destroy the gods and the demigods who had betrayed them. A vow to get their revenge. That was the day their lives changed for better or for worse. The day they became more powerful than they ever thought possible. The day they flung their joined hands in the air and shouted,

"We are the real Big Three!"

The day they let go of the good memories and never looked back.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the reviews, they made my day! I'm sorry this chapter is so short.**

"Brother, why did you do it?"

"I had to prevent another war! Poseidon, I am sorry that it has come to this, but if we had not allied ourselves with them we would be destroyed."

"That is just like you, Zeus, to put yourself before our children."

"When you realize I did the right thing I will let you go. Until then..." Zeus backed out of the dark room and slid the door in place. The sea god was consumed in darkness. He banged on the walls but they wouldn't budge. They were made to hold a god.

**LINEBREAK**

For once in just about forever the dining pavilion was silent. Campers sat, eyes downcast, at their tables with untouched food. How could they eat knowing it's their fault she's dead? A few of them glanced around and noticed all the Big Three tables were empty. They didn't expect Percy to be there, but where were Thalia and Nico?

"Campers," Chiron said. "We will burn the shroud of Annabeth Chase tonight. I expect you all in the amphitheater right after dinner." No one spoke. Dinner was finished. All the campers followed Chiron to the fire, which burned black. Annabeth's shroud was gray with an owl embroidered on it. Clarisse spoke first.

"Annabeth was an amazing fighter, and I'm sorry I never told her. She was brave and a-a good friend."

Next was Malcom, who was crying as he talked. "She was the best sister in the world and I loved her. She went through some tough times but in the end was worthy of calling herself a daughter of Athena."

Multiple speeches were made. Chiron's was the last.

"I loved Annabeth like a daughter, and I wish she was still here. I hope Zeus knows what he did, gods, I hope we all know what we did."

Malcom lit the shroud and the fire roared. Everyone was crying. They all felt guilty and responsible for her death. They were responsible. No one noticed the three figures perched up in the trees. No one heard one of those figures cry his heart out.


	3. Chapter 3

Last night was fresh in Percy's mind. He could still see the shroud slowly turning to ash. He could hear everyone sobbing, which was funny since they were the ones who killed Annabeth. The day she died was clear as day. It was about a week ago, a week before Nico and Thalia found him on the beach. The gods had made a deal with a very powerful goddess. Not Gaea, they beat her a year ago. Percy and Annabeth were twenty and getting married next year. That will never happen now, because you can't have a wedding without the bride. Percy remembered feeling as though he had died when he saw Annabeth's body fall lifeless to the ground. Her death kept playing over and over in his mind.

_Percy had just gotten to camp for the summer and was going to say hello to Chiron, when the campers surrounded him. They were brandishing weapons of all sorts. He was about to speak, when a sharp pain surged through his back. Someone had stabbed him in the small of his back, and if he still had the Achilles Curse he would be dead right now. Percy knew Nico and Thalia would have helped him, if they were there, but they were still on their way. Where was Annabeth? As if on cue, Annabeth burst through the crowd and elbowed the guy, who stabbed Percy, in the neck. By then Percy was kneeling on the ground in pain._

_"Leave him alone!" she had demanded._

_An Apollo girl said, "No, our parents said we must kill him."_

_"And you listened?" Annabeth asked, in disbelief._

_"Of course. Did no one tell you of this plan?"_

_"No,"_

_"Strange..." the girl had murmured._

_ A few campers circled the daughter of Athena and Percy couldn't stop them. Percy heard a shrill shriek of pain and the campers backed away. Annabeth lay dead, blood leaking from a stab wound in her chest. It was then his pain grew worse, for two reasons. One, he had been betrayed by the gods. Two, half of him was just stabbed in the heart. He crawled forward to the body, begging her to wake up. Percy cried for a good while until some campers decided he still had to die. Summoning the last of his strength he stood up and ran to the beach. Anger buried his devastation, but just for little while. As Percy dove into the water, he was planning different ways to torture the gods._

Now Percy understood that he didn't have to do anything, and he would still get his revenge. He had learned that the campers were told to kill him and they had agreed. Nico, Thalia, and Annabeth were the only people who had not been included in this scheme. The goddess that the Olympians made a deal with was Nyx, goddess of night. She had been told that Percy would die, so long as she left Olympus untouched.

Without Annabeth here, Percy felt empty, he felt dead. He couldn't believe Athena had let her own daughter die, to protect the "sea spawn". It wouldn't be surprising if the gods thought Percy was dead. It also wouldn't be surprising if Nyx declared war on the gods.

"Percy," a voice interrupted his thoughts. "Poseidon is missing."

"What?" Percy said, scrambling out of the tent. "Thalia, how do you know this?"

"Well, I overheard Artemis talking to Phoebe, yesterday before I quit. She said something about Poseidon not agreeing and now no one knows where he is."

"My father is missing, my fiancé is dead, can my life get any worse?" He asked, crying.

Nico walked over to them. "You could die."

"Yeah," Percy sniffed. "Let's pack up camp. I want to talk with the gods."

"But then they will know you're alive and try to kill you. Actually they will probably kill us all." Thalia argued.

"Oh well. Then you guys stay here. At least I can see Annabeth if I die."

"Percy," Nico said. "We're coming with you, but what do you want to say?"

"I want to know why Athena let Annabeth die, and where my father is. Then, we can sit back and watch Olympus fall, because I doubt Nyx will leave them alone. I bet she will take over the world.

"Perce, what if she kills us too?"

"Nico, I will make sure we live long enough to see our enemies suffer."


	4. Chapter 4

**Here's chapter four. I'm not very good at writing fighting scenes, but please let me know how I did :)**

"Are you sure about this Percy?"

"Yes, Nico, I'm sure."

"What if they kill us? What if they take us hostage? What if they-"

"Nico, calm down. Now hurry up, guys." Percy practically dragged his cousins through the streets of Manhattan. They bumped into a few people, earning them some very unkind words, but they didn't stop. They reached the Empire State Building and the doorman was as stubborn as ever.

Thalia said to him, "We need to get to the 600th floor, please."

"There isn't a 600th floor, kid. Get lost."

"No, I will not get lost. We need to talk to the Olympians."

"What are you talking about? What Olympians?"

"I want an audience with Zeus. My _father_." Thalia knew the gods would probably attempt to blast them on sight, but she doubted the doorman knew that. Telling him her father was Zeus would most likely get them in.

"Daughter of Zeus? I'm so sorry ma'am. I didn't know. Are they with you?" He motioned to Nico and Percy. Thalia nodded. The man gave them the card for the special slot in the elevator and sent them on their way. Thalia actually had a lot of fun getting to the throne room. The three had to sneak through Olympus, so no one saw them, and Thalia felt like a ninja. Or maybe it just reminded her of when she would sneak through the woods as a Hunter.

Once they arrived at the big bronze doors leading to where the Olympians were having a council meeting, they walked right in. It was, after all, the Winter Solstice. Percy was in the lead, holding his head up high. Nico went next, looking slightly scared for his life. Bringing up the rear was Thalia. Her eyes were glowing in determination and maybe a little hate.

Zeus saw them first. His jaw dropped and his eyes bugged. It would have looked hilarious, if the children of the Big Three knew for sure they weren't going to die.

"W-what? How? You should be dead!" Zeus shouted. The Master Bolt appearing in his hand.

Percy glared at the King of the Gods. "You haven't heard what happened? Well, let me enlighten you. The campers, my _friends, _were about to kill me, when Annabeth Chase showed up to save me. Do you know what happened next?" He turned his stone cold gaze onto Athena. "Take a guess, goddess of wisdom, as to what happened to you're daughter." Percy spat the word wisdom out like it was poison.

"Child, I already know what happened to her."

"Please tell me. I want to hear you say that you let your own daughter die." Thalia was surprised Percy wasn't dead yet. Maybe the gods wanted to pull a surprise attack or something.

"Perseus Jackson, you will not tell me what to do!"

"I just did."

Athena snapped. She launched herself out of her throne. Nico and Thalia jumped in front of Percy and tried to protect. Percy had pulled Riptide out by then and was standing in a defensive position. Athena pushed through the children of Zeus and Hades. She made her way toward the son of the sea with a spear ready.

"I don't want to fight you." Percy said.

"That's a shame, because I want to kill you." She moved in closer.

"You are a coward, Athena. Afraid to face the truth. The truth that Annabeth is dead and it's all because of you. If you hadn't voted to have me killed, she wouldn't have had to protect me, and she wouldn't be dead."

Athena struck Percy in the shoulder. He winced. She hit him again, in the arm, but he made no move to attack.

"Fight me! Or are you to scared? Is the brave Perseus Jackson afraid to lose?" Athena taunted.

"I did not come to fight. Kill me, though, if you must. But first, as a dying wish, I would like to know where my father is."

Athena froze up for a second, but snapped out of it and hit Percy in the arm once more.

"Well? Come on, it's the least you can do before I die."

Thalia and Nico were standing to the side looking very worried. None of the gods answered Percy's question, because only Zeus knew what happened to Poseidon, and he wouldn't tell. At least not yet.

"If you won't tell me, then I won't die." Percy charged Athena. She blocked his strike and he whirled around, aiming at her back. Athena anticipated this and spun around to face him. Sword met spear and Percy attempted to disarm Athena, but in vain. Athena parried strike after strike, before Percy went on defense. Athena searched for an opening. They circled each other. Athena went for the legs and Percy blocked. His sword hit her weapon with such force that she stumbled back. While she was dazed Percy attacked. Riptide left a large gash, which was dripping Ichor, in her stomach.

Percy was breathing heavily. "Can we be done now?" Thalia and Nico ran forward in case Athena kept fighting, but she just stomped back to her throne. Thalia glared at Athena, then her father.

"Zeus," she said. "Where is Poseidon? What did you do to him?"

"Daughter, he is unharmed. I merely, what would you call it... grounded him. Yes, he is grounded. Now, leave daughter so I may dispose of Perseus."

Nico glanced desperately at his father. "You are okay with this?"

The god of the Underworld sighed, "Son it is for you're own safety that he must die. I will explain later." he said this, though he sent Nico a look that clearly said _not now_. Nico, not understanding what his father was trying to say, grabbed Percy, who was tired out from his fight with Athena, by the arm and dragged him towards the door.

Thalia growled, "You will not touch my cousin."

Apollo frowned. "Thalia, you need to understand why we are doing this."

"Oh, I understand all right. You don't want Nyx to hurt you, so you told the campers to kill Percy, but Annabeth was killed instead and Zeus locked Poseidon up for something. You are all cowards!" Nico was waiting at the door with Percy, but Thalia kept talking.

"Why are you all so weak? Do you really think that if you kill Percy, Nyx will spare you? No, she will destroy you all. I won't let you kill Percy anyway. Oh, and Zeus, don't expect us to come save you when you are being thrown into Tartarus. We might be there, but to watch you fall." Thalia turned and ran out after her friends. Strangely enough, Zeus let them go.


	5. Chapter 5

"My lady? Are you in there? I have some good news."

"Just come in already, Moros." Said an impatient voice from the other side of the door.

The god of doom stepped inside. "Lady Nyx, I have brought some information on Perseus."

"Pray tell me, child." Nyx leaned back in her pitch-black throne.

"I have done as you asked and kept an eye on him. The daughter of Athena was killed protecting him, and you should have seen him unleash all his anger through the ocean. It was incredible. He is a great fighter, and I wish you had seen him. More than once he fought off armies of monsters, with the help of those cousins of his. This was on his way to Olympus. Then he fought the goddess of wisdom herself."

"Worthy of my army?"

"Yes."

"Very well. Find Hypnos. We shall go at once."

**Manhattan**

Thalia and Nico were helping Percy along. They had one goal. To get away from Olympus. The three were near Central Park, when a flash of light blinded them. Three figures emerged from the light.

"Who are you?" Thalia asked. The first person was a lady with long black hair and black eyes. The last two were men. One had spiky black hair and dark silver-gray eyes. The other also had spiked hair, but brown, and sleepy-looking dark brown eyes.

The woman smiled. "I am Nyx."

Percy pushed Nico off of him and stumbled forward. Fighting a goddess can really tire a person out. "You're Nyx? You tried to have me killed?"

"Well, Perseus, I wanted to test your strength. I was impressed when I heard of what you did after your beloved girlfriend died. I find it interesting that you took on Athena, the goddess of battle strategy."

"Um, thanks. But why are you here? To kill me?" Percy eyed Nyx. Thalia and Nico stood next to him, ready to attack at a moments notice.

"No, of course not. You passed my test. I mean, I wouldn't have cared if you had died, but as long as you live and seek revenge, we can work together. Can we not?"

Thalia glanced at the two men behind the goddess. "Wait, who are they?"

"Oh, these are my children. Moros, god of doom, and Hypnos, god of sleep."

"Ok..." Thalia murmured. Percy, after considering what Nyx had said, spoke up.

"Why would I join you, after you tried to kill me?"

"I was testing you, Jackson."

"Annabeth died!"

"Blame the gods and your so-called-friends. They agreed to it. They betrayed you Perseus. You were about to be disposed of like yesterday's trash. Zeus has locked up Poseidon, just because he didn't want you dead. Your precious Annabeth died, protecting you, because the ones that you loved most betrayed you. Tell me you don't want revenge."

"I do, but the Fates will handle it and I won't get involved."

"What if it is your fate to get involved? What if you are the one who will strike Zeus down and send him to the deepest depths of Tartarus? I promise I will not harm you. We can be allies. We can rule the world, and I will save your father. He will not lose his throne. What do you say?"

"Well... I will come. But only if Thalia and Nico can come too."

"Of course. Now come, children. We must plan our attack." Nyx stepped through a swirling black portal, with a half-asleep god right behind her. Moros flashed the three demigods a wicked smile, before entering. Percy glanced at his cousins. They nodded and together disappeared in the darkness.

**That was shorter than I would have liked, but you find out something important. Percy has joined Nyx to fight the gods.**


	6. Chapter 6

Travis and Connor went around the cabins, instructing the campers to the dining pavilion for an emergency meeting. The twins seemed lifeless. They never pulled pranks, never joked or laughed. They forgot what it felt like to be happy. It was as if they were robots, built to do the same thing everyday. Eat, train, eat, sleep, again and again. Why are they like this? Because they were guilty. Well, Travis had it worse. After all, he was the one who had plunged a dagger into Annabeth's heart. Connor stood there, watching as it happened and every night that haunted him. He could hear the daughter of Athena screaming. He could see her body on the ground. He could only imagine how Travis must feel. Some days Connor would have to literally drag Travis out of bed.

Anyway, today their robotic routine was broken. Chiron had called for a meeting with all of the campers, and last Connor checked, that wasn't on the schedule. Never the less the two sons of Hermes gathered up the campers. Once everyone was in the dining pavilion Chiron stamped his feet.

"Campers, I have depressing news. As you all know, Nyx had a deal with the gods. Perseus Jackson was to die, and we would not be attacked. We have failed to kill Perseus, instead killing Annabeth Chase. It seems Nyx recruited Nico, Thalia, and Perseus to her army. We expect an attack soon."

Travis stared at the ground. He was ashamed. The campers were silent. Apparently they felt the same way as Travis. If they hadn't agreed to the gods plan, Percy wouldn't have left. Thalia and Nico wouldn't have gone after him. What was done was done, though, and the demigods had to fight their hero. Possibly to the death.

Chiron continued. "The gods have called all of us to Olympus." Before the questions could start of why they had to go to Olympus, a bright flash enveloped all the half-bloods and they appeared in the Olympian Throne Room.

"Hello demigods." Zeus said.

The campers chorused hello.

"You are here because you must be trained if we are to win this war. I want Hephaestus to help his children with the building of our defenses and Athena to help her children plan everything out, but also give them some extra battle training. Apollo and Artemis will personally train all of the campers in archery, and Ares in sword fighting. Also, each of the gods will train their kids to be better at using their respective powers."

One of the campers spoke up, "But we already get trained at camp."

"Yes, but for this coming war, you will need to be much stronger. Please, no arguments." Everyone just nodded and split up. Some to go do archery, some sword fighting,and some to train their special powers.

The Stoll brothers had gone with Ares and a couple other kids to work on their fighting skills. Since training had been the only thing the two did since Annabeth died, they had become increasingly better fighters. Travis Stoll fought hard out of anger. Anger at the gods and at himself. When he was fighting, he could just release all of his emotions. He could forget. Ares had told Travis to fight against Clarisse, for the god wanted to see how strong the campers were. Travis smirked to himself as he saw Clarisse's expression. She looked overly confident.

Travis swung first. Clarisse blocked with her sword and tried to push him back, but Travis held his ground. She backed up a little, and they circled each other. The son of Hermes lunged. He got under Clarisse's guard and hit her in the chest. All that did was scratch her armor. He could tell his opponent was getting mad. She had underestimated Travis. Clarisse would charge, but Travis was to fast. Eventually the daughter of Ares went on defense. With Travis moving so fast she barely had time to block. He would get in close, stab her, and then jump away before she could react.

From time to time Ares would yell out tips. Most of them including the use of brute strength. Clarisse took the advice. She locked her sword with Travis' and shoved him into the wall. His eyes darted around frantically for a way out. Clarisse smirked.

"I guess I-" She was cut off as Travis kicked at her leg and knocked her back.

He smiled. "You guess you what?" Clarisse just scowled and charged. Travis ducked under her sword and stabbed her in the foot. She knelt down holding her foot. Travis kicked her in the chest and pointed his sword at her throat. Ares said,

"Travis wins!" He walked over to the demigods. "You're pretty good for a son of Hermes." The god of war walked off to help some other kids, or more specifically to yell at some kids. As Travis looked around he couldn't help but think how slim of a chance they had at winning this war.


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry I took so long to update. I had finals last week and was pretty busy. I'm going on vacation and won't be able to update for two weeks. This is short, but I wanted to post something. I'm gonna start responding to the reviews.  
**

**AngelWings178: Thank you! :) I was thinking about maybe being an author  
jenn008: Here you go! It's pretty short though...  
**

Malcom barely paid his mother any attention. He was mad. How could Athena have gone along with the plan to kill Percy? Of course she did hate children of Poseidon, but that was a little overboard. Then, when Annabeth got in the way, the goddess could have done something, but no. Athena let her own daughter die. Some mother. Malcom hadn't agreed with the plan, but there was no way he could stand up to eleven Olympian gods, and all the campers. He didn't understand how Percy's so called friends could be okay with killing Percy. Maybe they had felt the same way as Malcom. Or maybe they were so concerned with not fighting Nyx that they would have done anything.

"Malcom, did you hear me?"

"No, Athena. I'm afraid I did not quite catch that."

"You better listen to me when I talk to you. Understood?" Athena growled.

"Understood," Malcom said through clenched teeth.

"Good. I said do you have any plans for coordinating the defenses?"

"No. You're the goddess of battle strategy, you should know these things."

"I do have a plan, but I thought maybe my son would also have some ideas."

Malcom turned to study a map and muttered to low for his mother to hear, "I am not your son." He could feel her piercing gaze on his back, though he refused to talk to her. He had decided to offer as little help in the war as possible. His sister died for a selfish reason on the gods' part, so why would Malcom help?

"I said listen when I talk to you!" Athena's angry voice caused her son to spin around, his eyes glinting angrily.

"Now, tell me-" She was cut off as Malcom stalked out and slammed the door.

The son of Athena raced through Olympus. He couldn't stay with that pathetic excuse for a mother any longer. If he could, Malcom would join the other side. Suddenly his avenging his sister's death seemed more important than slaving for the gods. Maybe, just maybe, he would run away and try to join Nyx's army. Sighing, Malcom paced his room and looked at his watch. It was almost eleven o'clock at night.

It was then that he decided something. He would leave tonight.

Malcom climbed out of his window and made a break for the golden elevator that would lead him to his freedom. Apparently Percy, Nico, and Thalia had joined Nyx. If he could find one of them, they might help him join. The only thing that didn't occur to Malcom was what would happen if he was rejected.

Malcom had been searching for a week, but still no sign Nyx's army. He was walking through a forest in South Carolina when everything fell silent. The wind that had been blowing stopped. The birds quit chirping. A sheet of darkness fell over the forest. A figure appeared out of nowhere. It was obviously a girl. She was wearing a hooded cloak so Malcom couldn't see her face. The girl stepped forward.

"We have been watching you, son of Athena."

"Who are you?" Malcom asked, though he had a feeling he already knew.

The girl laughed. "Come with us. My lady wishes to meet you."

"You didn't answer me. Who are you?"

"Malcom, you know who I am." She laid a hand on his shoulder and they disappeared in a flash of silver light.


	8. Chapter 8

**I'm sorry I haven't updated in forever! I got back from vacation a couple days ago, and then I didn't know what to write. This chapter is pretty short, because it's just introducing some new characters. I will make the next one extra long.**

**Forever wolfy: Thank you :)**  
**Avardsin: Here's the update :)**  
**dragonzftw: :) It's not really the dark side **  
**Shredjeep777: Thanks :) I don't know what God of War is...**  
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"You want me to go in there by myself and talk to Nyx?"

"Yes,"

Malcom sighed and pushed open the heavy doors. The girl hadn't told him who she was, and it was driving him crazy. Every time he asked she would just laugh. Two torches of Greek Fire sat on the far wall, but that was it. In between those torches was a silver throne with ancient Greek words engraved on it. A lady with long black hair and a Greek-style dress lounged on the throne. A creepy shadow was cast over her and an eerie silence filled the room.

"You must be Malcom. My newest warriors wish for you to join as strategist. Apparently you have been looking for us?"

"I have been looking for you."

"And why, Malcom, do you want to join me?"

"I want revenge."

"Doesn't everybody?" Nyx stood up and neared Malcom. "Usually I invite my members, but perhaps I could make an exception. Do you hate the Olympians, or are you angry with them? How do I know you won't go back?"

The son of Athena hesitated. "I suppose I hate them for killing my sister."

"But do you hate them, or do you hate something they did?"

"I…hate them. I promise not to leave this army."

"Swear on the Styx."

"I swear on the River Styx that I will be loyal to your army."

Nyx smiled and laid a hand on my shoulder. "Come and meet my soldiers." The goddess led him out of the building. The girl from before was still waiting there.

"Tell him who you are." Nyx commanded. The girl removed her hood to reveal black hair and shining blue eyes.

"Hello, Malcom."

"Thalia?"

"Yeah, you'll see Percy and Nico soon."

Nyx led them through the city, and Malcom found it hard to believe that the Olympians didn't know about this place. They stopped at the war council room. Inside nine soldiers were seated, and three people were standing behind the chair at the head of the table. Nyx sat in that chair and Thalia sat in the last empty one.

The soldiers slightly bowed their heads to Nyx as she said, "Introduce yourselves one at a time. This is Malcom, son of Athena."

The person directly to the left of Nyx said, "Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon." He smiled at me. Next to him was Nico, then Thalia.

"Diana, daughter of Hecate, Lieutenant to Commander Dolos, god of trickery."

"Brody, son of Até, Lieutenant to Commander Apate, goddess of deceit."

"Freya, daughter of Bia, Lieutenant to Commander Moros, god of doom."

"Cade, son of Bellona, strategist."

"Lia, daughter of Morpheus, Assassin."

"Daimen, son of Phobos, Assassin."

"Jasmine, daughter of Peitha, Assassin."

Nyx said, "Percy, Thalia, and Nico will now be given ranks. They will be assassins. Malcom you will be a strategist."

The people behind her were introduced. The man with blond hair and green eyes was Dolos. The lady with short brown hair and orange-yellow eyes was Apate. Lastly, the black-haired, silver-eyed man was Moros.

"Now down to business. The Assassins will go in three days to capture an Olympian."


	9. Chapter 9

**I'm sorry that I always take forever to update. I have no excuse this time, I was just being lazy. Anyway, this chapter is my longest yet :) **

**jenn008: It took me a while, but I did! :)**  
**PiperMcLean351: :)**  
**CrazyPeanutAttack: :)**  
**Me-MowtheAssasin514: She had to die... And thank you :)**  
**Bfflsonfire: Thanks :)**

"Daimen, Percy, and Jasmine will knock out, not kill, everyone in the vicinity besides our target. He is currently training in the arena. When that is done, the rest of us will go in and capture him. Don't let anyone see you." Lia, who acted as the leader, instructed. The Assassins were heading out now to take their hostage.

Daimen and Percy ran out of their hiding spot. They were banging people on the head left and right. The arena was soon in sight. Percy silently swung the door and they crept inside. The target was the only one in there.

"We're ready guys." Daimen whispered over his head set.

"Ok we're coming in now."

Percy sighed as we watched the target hack at the dummies. "Look at him. He's reckless."

Damien shook his head and smiled. "And you're not? Now be quiet before he hears us." Too late. The target had turned around. Percy and Daimen were hiding in a shadowed corner, but it was only a matter of time before they were caught.

"Great job, Percy! He's on to us!" Daimen hissed. The other boy frowned.

"I know you're in here." The target called out. "Come and fight me, coward!"

Percy was tempted to do just that, but this was a stealth mission and even though all seemed lost, doing so would just make it worse.

"I said come and fight me!" His eyes were flashing a dangerous red. Daimen stared hard at the target, and said man's evil smirk disappeared. Pure fear was glowing in his eyes.

"What's this?" He yelled. "Stop this madness or I will kill you!" He said this, though his expression said otherwise. Percy sent a confused glance at his partner, who was too focused on the enemy to notice. Percy had a couple of thoughts at the moment, but the most prominent one was, "Where is the rest of the team?" Daimen's face was now beaded in sweat, and the target was screaming in pure terror. Another thought the Percy had was, "What is going on?"

Suddenly the screaming stopped and Daimen collapsed in Percy's arms. Said boy whispered frantically into his head-set.

"We need help, Ares is going to find us and Daimen passed out. Help!" No reply. Ares, the target was now standing, a menacing look on his face.

"Oh, now I'm definitely going to kill you!" Percy laid Daimen gently on the ground, and stepped into the open.

"Hey, Ares!" Percy yelled, getting the war gods attention.

"Percy Jackson? You're the one who did that? Well, prepare to die, punk!"

"Um, no I didn't do that, but whatever." He pulled a dagger off his belt as Ares got into a battle stance. They both waited, wanting the other to charge first. Not gonna happen, Percy thought. Ares smirked and lunged. Percy was pushed back by the force of the sword on his dagger.

"So, what do you think of being betrayed by your friends, boy?" Ares questioned as he jabbed at Percy, who ducked and kicked the god in the chest. Ares laughed when Percy didn't reply.

"How does it feel to have everyone you trusted turn against you like that?"

Percy, now on defense, tried to ignore him, but just being in Ares presence made him want to kill somebody, and these words weren't helping.

"I wanted Zeus to kill you a long time ago, Jackson." Ares growled, swinging at the demigod. Percy dodged the attack and lunged at the god of war's neck.

"I know." Was all he said, trying to control his anger, and thinking about his lessons he had in the past few days. Ares wasn't thinking about his moves, he was just swinging wildly. Percy knew better than that. He was an assassin, he thought about every move he made. He learned his opponents. What he knew about Ares was that the god wanted him dead, and was now blinded by hate. Perfect. Percy got in close and managed to land a blow in his arm. That just made Ares even madder. Another thing Percy knew was that sometimes an angry war god was dangerous. Know was one of those times. As Percy battled his enemy, different parts of his brain wandered off and then landed on one subject. Where was his team?

Ares jumped at Percy and tackled him to the ground.

"Enough of your games! This ends now. Zeus will reward me greatly when I present him with your body." The god had Percy pinned down, sword at his throat.

"Say goodnight, punk."

Out of nowhere someone flew at Ares, knocking him aside. Percy took this opportunity to scramble up and get a good look at his savior. Daimen had come to the rescue. Ares was once again screaming.

"What are you doing to him?" Percy asked.

Daimen got off Ares and ran to Percy's side, pulling out a dagger of his own. The screaming stopped, and an angry war god charged the pair. Daimen ducked and slashed at Ares' leg. Golden ichor trickled to the floor. Percy jumped onto Ares' back and punched him in the back of the head. One assassin alone put up a good fight, but two were even better.

They managed to knock Ares out, but not without receiving injuries themselves. Daimen was limping and Percy was bleeding profusely from a gash in his arm.

"Where are the others?" Daimen panted, heading towards the door. Percy followed, frowning as he said, "I don't know. They never showed up."

As Daimen pulled open the arena doors, Ares was forgotten. The sight wasn't pretty. A few bodies lay lifeless on the ground, and a trail of blood headed off toward the Throne Room. They took off, following the trail. It stopped in some places, but picked up a few feet ahead. There were dozens of possibilities, none of them good. The pool of blood in front of the doors made Percy sick. He glanced at Daimen, and together they walked inside. Both of them stopped dead in their tracks, before taking off toward a body on the floor. Neither of them bothered to notice the fully armed Olympians sitting upon their thrones.


	10. Chapter 10

**Here's chapter ten!**

**PhantomWhispers: Thank you  
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CrazyPeanutAttack: :)  
Avardsin: Thanks :) and your welcome  
jenn008: Not to soon...but it's an update :)  
Guest: 'Cause Annabeth had to die or the story wouldn't work. Only something like that would make Percy turn on the gods  
ThaliaAndNicoForEver: Thanks :)  
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The two boys dropped to the floor next to the boy on the floor. Percy felt relief course through him when he felt a pulse. Faint, but there. Blood stained the marble floor, and the boy. Judging from the amount of blood that wasn't in the boy's body, Percy figured he should be dead. But he was, by some miracle, alive.

"Oh my gods," Percy whispered. "Nico," He stared at Nico in horror. Daimen was crouched next to Nico, trying to stop some of the bleeding, while Percy was repeatedly checking to make sure he was breathing. They barely noticed the some of the gods surround them.

"Percy," Daimen nudged his friend and gestured to Zeus, who was glaring harshly at them, Master Bolt ready. Percy glanced at the circle of gods. Zeus, Hera, Dionysus, Athena, and Demeter. Ares was unconscious in the arena and the other gods were sitting on their thrones, looking at the scene with guilty faces, but for all Percy knew it was an act. Ares and Dionysus grabbed Percy's arms, yanking him up, while Zeus and Athena grabbed Daimen. Demeter and Hera chained their wrists and ankles. Percy saw the campers huddled in the corner. He saw the rest of his team chained up to a pillar. They had panicked expressions, while the campers looked guilty.

"Now," Zeus started. "I will kill you once and for all, Perseus Jackson."

"If you kill me Zeus, you're gonna have to kill my friends too. Would you do that? Murder your own daughter in cold blood?"

"She is working against me!"

"Yes, but at least if you met on the battlefield it would be a fair fight." Percy was still wondering about Nico. He should be dead. Apollo caught his eye and nodded to the son of Hades. Percy's eyes widened. Apollo was keeping Nico alive.

Zeus growled. "I forbid you to speak, son of Poseidon. Now, who are you?" He turned to Daimen.

"None of your business." Daimen glared at the god.

"Tell me who you are! Or that girl over there gets it." Daimen craned his neck to see Athena standing with a knife at Lia's neck.

"My name is Daimen."

"Are you demigod?"

"Yes,"

"Who's your parent?" Daimen stared at the ground, refusing to talk. Zeus kicked him in the chest, knocking the wind out of him.

"I wasn't kidding, boy. Athena will kill her if you don't cooperate. Then we will kill the other."

Daimen groaned as he got his breath back. "Then who will you kill? Thalia?"

Zeus kicked him again, harder this time. "Tell me!" Athena dug the knife a little deeper and blood started to trickle down Lia's neck. Not much, but it still scared Daimen.

"Phobos."

"What?"

"I said, Zeus, my father is Phobos, god of fear."

"It's Lord Zeus to you!" Daimen just glared. Percy had been staring at Hades, a vicious look in his eyes. Despite Zeus having forbidden him to speak, Percy called out,

"Did you do this? Or did you just watch as someone else did?" He pointed to Nico. Hades frowned, and shook his head.

"Hey!" Zeus shouted. "You shouldn't be talking!"

"Why?"

"I will kill you!" Lighting flashed and thunder boomed in the distance.

"Weren't you going to do that anyways? You'll kill me, then Daimen, then Lia and Jasmine, and then your daughter. Because that's what you do. Kill. You know what Zeus; I wish my father was more like you. I wish he was cold-hearted, and killed his own children! That's something to be proud of."

"That's it!" Zeus raised his bolt to strike Percy to Tartarus, but Artemis intervened.

"Father, we can't kill them yet. We have to find out about Nyx's army." Her voice was slightly panicked, but it was barely noticeable.

"I don't care! We can get that information out of the others! Percy Jackson must die."

"But, Father. We can use him to bait the others into coming here."

"Artemis, anyone of these kids will work just fine as bait."

"No, it has to be Percy." She demanded.

"Why?" Zeus sounded impatient.

"Why not?"

Zeus sighed. "As long as you all shut up." He sat upon his throne. Athena stood guard by the rest of the Assassins, Percy and Daimen sat in chains next to Nico, who was still unconscious, and the campers hadn't moved this whole time. Percy knew one thing. Some gods were helping him, but that meant nothing. They hadn't stopped any of this. They hadn't objected when Zeus ordered the son of Poseidon's death. Yet here they were, trying to save Percy, and it meant absolutely nothing to him. So far he only knew Apollo and Artemis didn't want him dead.

"Now tell me, Daimen, about Nyx and the army. Perseus, don't say a word, because I will not hesitate to kill you next time."

"I'm not telling you anything." Daimen growled. Once again they threatened him with Lia's death. Her eyes were screaming don't do it, but Daimen couldn't let her die. He was like Percy in that way. Loyal.

"What do you want to know?"

"How big is the army? When will we be attacked? Weaknesses?"

"Don't say anything, Daimen!" Lia yelled. "I am your commander, and I order you to stay quiet." It seemed loyalty was a problem with this team. Though Daimen would risk the world for one person, and Lia would risk herself for the world.

"The army is big. We attacked you this morning. And obviously big-headed gods are a problem." Daimen muttered, answering Zeus, but not really giving anything away.

Zeus growled. "Kill them all."

"No!" Hades and Artemis shouted at the same time. Apollo was focusing on keeping Nico alive.

"What do you mean _no_?"

"I mean, I won't let you kill them." Hades said, standing up.

"Oh yeah? And how are you going to stop me, hmm?" An arrow sprouted out of Zeus' side.

He turned in surprise, to see Artemis standing with another arrow ready to fly. Hades had out two stygian iron swords and the Helm of Darkness on his head. Artemis fired at Athena trying to distract her, while Hades charged Zeus. All the other gods were watching with interest. Soon Artemis and Athena were engaged in close combat. The goddess of the Hunt had a pair of hunting knives, while her opponent had a sword. It was unclear who was winning. Hades was beating Zeus back, but it was just a matter of time before the king of the gods over-powered him.

In the midst of this mess, Travis made his way over and unchained Percy.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, before running back to his spot. Percy let Daimen go and the two ran to their friends. No one noticed them, for all the gods were focused on the fights. Apollo was now kneeling over Nico, murmuring ancient words.

Suddenly the air grew cold and a sheet of darkness swept in. A swirling black portal opened up and out came four figures. The Assassins recognized them immediately and smiled. The lady in front moved forward.

"Well, I see you Olympians just can't pass up a fight, with each other none the less."

"Who are you?" Zeus asked, cautiously.

"I am Nyx and these are my commanders. Dolos, Moros, and Apate."

"Why are you here?"

"To get my assassins back."

"You're not allowed. It is against the Ancient Laws for gods to intervene directly."

"Yes, but I am merely following your example of breaking those laws, dear Zeus. You were about to kill Percy. Last I checked you were a god, am I wrong? And I doubt one of those pathetic campers was able to do this to Nico, and capture the Assassins. Therefore, you have broken the laws already. Why am I not allowed?"

"Because!"

"Lovely reason, Zeus." Nyx flicked her wrist and shadows wrapped around him. "Come," She told her soldiers. The portal opened and she stepped through. Percy murmured thanks to the gods who helped him, and carried Nico through. Lia was the last one, but before she could step through, Athena lunged and yanked her back.


	11. Chapter 11

**So...I was going to get rid of this story, but instead PhantomWhispers is going to help me write it. They wrote this chapter, and I went through and edited.** **It will probably be like this for every chapter. PhantomWhispers will write it and I'll edit. **

Trapped. She felt trapped within her prison. Encaged as an animal, she could do nothing but sit helplessly, knowing her ruthless captors would show her no mercy.

"Prove to us your loyalty!" boomed a voice.

"Yes, yes!" cackled another. "Show us your worthiness, child!"

"No! I-I'll never betray my mistress." She gulped as she sensed the creature smiling. Smiling in victory.

"Oh dear child, beg us to spare your life, like the coward you are!" Silver shackles appeared at her wrists.

No longer was she an animal, she was a toy. A game built for the pure amusement for her torturers. Large hands suddenly gripped the thick, iron bars that made up her cell. They easily twisted the metal before her, but the bars never had a chance to snap before the hands had let go.

"Smile for me, before your last words have been uttered."

She blinked back harsh tears. Her struggled breaths seem to echo in her prison- mocking her and her own stupidity. She was an assassin. How could she have let herself get captured?

**Line *_* Break**

f all the demigods in the room, none of their expressions quite summed up the emotions in the room. Their expressions varied from fear to anger. Though, none of them truly showed the only thing blazing in the demigod's minds: fury.

The room was eerily quiet and dark except for a table-sized "computer" casting off a rumbling purr and starry glow. It wasn't a computer, though. Rather, its glowing luminescence was actually a form of magic the goddess Nyx had conjured together.

The magical item was a form of dark magic being fused together in the mortal world. The result of such a criminal act gave oneself an odd creation of "wormlike" shadows and mirrors connecting you to where ever.

"Better than IM-ing," Nyx had explained earlier. "It is a rogue service network combined with darkness. Allows us to see in anywhere in- allowable circumstances."

At the moment, the most of the demigods had dispersed, leaving Percy, Nico, and Thalia alone facing the image of Lia, their first casualty, being abused by the ominous figure. All three of them shivered as they realized how dreadful her situation was. Never had they witnessed such a cruel treatment to an innocent. Except Annabeth.

_There had been no reason for her death, _thought Percy. He shook his head as he realized that Nyx's night-broadcaster had whirred to a complete stop. It still glowed in the dark room, causing the remaining three demigods' shadows to be cast at funny angles across the floor.

Nico cleared his throat and nudged Percy's elbow. Percy barely responded. He withdrew his arm and slightly nodded his head, motioning for Nico to speak.

"It is morning," he said.

Thalia eyes quickly drifted downwards to the watch that had been strapped onto her wrist. She hesitantly brought her arm up to be able to read the time.

"It's only one in the morning," she announced. She returned her arm to its earlier position and looked toward Nico for help.

Percy, too, returned his mind to the current reality and looked to Nico for an explanation. "Yeah, what gives?"

"Well," Nico started. "It only works in the hours of 'night'. Did you know that midnight works best as well t-"

"Come on! Stick to the topic!"

"-Anyways, because it is no longer nighttime, the energy used to run the- wait, what is it even called? I mean, really?"

"How about 'NT'?" asked Percy. "Night Talk." He shrugged.

Nico half-heartily grinned. "Sure. So, it is powered by the whimsical night. You do see where I am going on with this little story, right guys?"

Thalia nodded. "No night. No NT."

Nico nodded his head solemnly. "Now we can only hope Lia will…live." Percy swallowed hard. His eyes were blinking furiously, lips pressed, and his fists were clenched tightly.

He never wanted any of this to happen. He didn't want Lia to be captured and he didn't want to get his friends involved in all of this. He never wanted Annabeth to die...

"Annabeth." His voice trailed off and his sea green eyes were now rimmed with a bright red color from his severe emotional state.

Thalia frowned. She was saddened by seeing Percy, her closest companion, like this. She had long realized how emotionally tight he was. He was going to break soon, and this was the moment.

Annabeth. She had been like her sister. Thalia sighed heavily and placed a comforting hand on Percy's shoulder.

"Percy..."

He turned his head to meet her properly. Noticing her eyes, he saw how they had faded from their usual electric blue. They no longer showed her excited, eccentric self. They showed the sadness and bitterness

she, too, had locked within herself. But Percy knew what was truly different about Thalia. "Your eyes. Y-You... You left the Hunters."

Thalia looked toward Nico, silently begging him to explain. He, instead of Thalia, spoke. "She had to quit, Percy. You know, with the- the death and gods."

"How do you know?"

He hung his head low, feeling too guilty to even blush because of the remark. "She told me first."

Percy nodded, too emotionally worn to respond with an enraged remark. Thalia sniffled quietly.

"I'm sorry, Percy. I- You were so upset and... I gave up my maiden-hood; it was the right choice. I know my sisters will miss me as I will them, but I-I cannot fulfill the task any longer." She wrapped her arms around Percy and buried her head in his shoulder.

Percy pulled away and started to walk toward his room located within the vast building. "I need to go to bed. Thanks, guys."

Nico stopped him abruptly. "You're welcome, Percy. We will always help you, you know."

Percy gave a short grunt out of his fatigue in response and reached his bedroom quarters. Opening the door, he stepped into the room and sat on the simply-black-sheet bed. He stared blankly at the wall for a few moments until he was interrupted by a couple knocks on the door.

"Come on in," he muttered.

Thalia and Nico came strolling in, looking slightly embarrassed. Nico spoke first.

"There are three beds in here..." His voice faded as soon as he saw Percy first inspect the room.

"Go ahead," Percy announced, leading them to their beds with a simple hand gesture.

"Just like the old Percy..." breathed Nico. Thalia nodded in pure agreement.

Percy didn't hear the comment, for he had drifted off to sleep. The other two demigods dropped onto their beds. With the god Hypnos, the influence of sleep was strong. Before another second passed, they were all fast asleep.

For once since the unspeakable (and fateful) incident, their breathing seemed normal, and their faces were restored to their original mischievous (and happy) demigod faces.

Whenever they were conscious, the demigods' faces were stripped of any original form they had once achieved during earlier times of happiness.

Percy looked especially happy, but his face quickly turned pained as he tossed and turned while he slept.


	12. Chapter 12

**It's been a while...But here's the next chapter! Just a reminder, they are written by PhantomWhispers and edited by me.**

Percy looked above his running body. The heavens were flashing brightly with anger and strife. He saw a dark, furious mass of clouds swarming above him. Crashing, foamy waves pounded behind him. Soft, pearly white sand was laid out beneath him, stretching as far as it could until the giant masses of water swept it away.

A storm was approaching. The air was filled with bursts of lighting, and the smell of ozone. Percy could hear nothing but the waves and thunder. For once, the storm seemed complete. The dark, murky waves never felt the force of the wind; they would have almost seemed at peace if they hadn't been so violent.

The waves were so tall that they submerged Percy completely, before receding back into the sea. Air swirled dangerously around him, but before it could abandon him, he saw a determined horned owl, eyes streaked with gray and charcoal stripes. Gold flecks bounced off of its brilliant ivory plumage.

Percy felt the smallest bit of him feeling anxious. His mind's thoughts seemed to stir, and the guilt of abandoning efforts to help the poor thing did not withdraw themselves.

He boldly lifted his arm up and stretched. The wind and waves still battled against him, but the will of reaching it never ceased. Percy felt drawn to the owl- a need greater than he had ever felt; it even seemed to overpower his love for Annabeth.

Tears now stung his eyes. His vision was now chalky white and foggy in all conspicuous areas. He felt sand being swept over his feet, burying Percy and entombing him within the safes of the earth.

The owl flew bravely, but, alas, swept away at the hardest of all of its attempts. It never stood a chance against such harsh weather.

Percy felt mad- even angry- that the storm had taken his owl. His heart now pounded against his ribs, he knew he could never withstand any more pressure- the wind, water, owl, war- he gave up hope in apathetic way. He let his body lay limp and waited for his head to be encased with sand. It never happened. He was shocked and his mind went blank with a brilliant flash of lightning, streaking across the heavens and bolting towards him.

As if his thoughts were not yet confusing and... scary enough for him, his anxiety was risen to another notch as he heard a voice. No, the voice.

It rang as clear as bells in a clear valley. The echo of the voice enraptured him, making him drift off into an almost endless symphony of dreams and memories. The voice did indeed lead Percy's mind to wandering into the half shut-down sections of his head- the memories he almost wanted to forget. Like that special night in the canoe lake...

"Percy. Don't; Think about it..."

The voice was rather ominous as well, but it was rather hypnotizing and unrecognizable and threatening. It made Percy sure he was drenched in cold sweat in his reality. This was all so nerve-racking; he wasn't even sure he had ever had a dream so- peculiar as this dream. Those were like an instant burst of electricity to his head, and the last thing that he recollected was the sudden forceful suck- like being pulled on both arms- ripping him out of his dreamscape. A jerking movement from his vision forced him to writhe and scream with pain. It literally felt like his bones were being pulled out of his pockets.

"Aaaaaaahhh!" he screamed absorbing every detail in his "newfound" reality. Dreams so real had made him feel like everything was now an utter joke- a play. He patted his covers, the bed, his face, and almost anything he could grasp to take in the slideshow of the real world.

Thalia and Nico were now shaking Percy (hopefully to reality) as his groggy person began to awaken. Both were painted with sullen, anxious looks full of despair and worry. Never had they thought that Percy would ever need their help but neither did they ever imagine having a problem such as this.

Percy had finally stopped being drunk off of his emotional state. He slowly took deep breaths, mouthfuls of air gulped down with each hiccup. He sluggishly hugged both of his cousins, whether out of misery, affection, or anxiety, Thalia and Nico did not know. However, they felt that as long as they were able to help or console Percy in any way whatsoever, they were fulfilling an oath, a promise, and a friendship.

Nico cleared his throat, trying to gain Percy's attention. Once he had achieved his goal, he began to speak. "Come on, Percy. We have a meeting on the scouting and stuff."

Percy cocked his head to one side, a befuddled expression spreading across his face. "H-how do you know that?" He eyed Nico rather suspiciously and frowned while waiting for an answer.

Thalia, too, looked downright confused. She obviously had not been able to obtain any new information.

"Nyx said so- when I checked the NT."

The others nodded slowly and traipsed toward the door, starting to head down the hallway to the center room in which the NT was located.

"So, will it-" Percy started.

"Yeah right, Kelp Head. It is morning." proclaimed Thalia, bearing one if her rare smug grins.

Percy, too, grinned, while Nico chuckled silently. Though all was rather different than their previous norm, they all had made a tiny effort, and all three were rather proud. Sighing, they kept themselves in a prompt manner, walking to the center of the headquarters. The trio of demigods knew they would be told the full details of the scouting mission. Whether the details were good or bad, the demigods felt that they had enough at heart to deal with it if they were to be assigned on a woeful mission.

"Ah, welcome," Nyx said, spreading her arms out in friendliness. "Thalia, Percy, and Nico."

She stood from her obsidian black throne and drifted from the front of the room to the main entrance to face the demigods properly. There were probably more than twenty demigods there- all with a deep scowl, or defiant looks in their eyes, or the sullen expressions of loneliness and guilt. One thing they all shared in common was their pasts. All were unfortunate and all had mistaken their tragic fates for good omens.

Their eyes swiveled and focused on Nyx with each and every echoing sound in the halls. She merely floated towards them with her face high with pride. Nyx dropped to the floor and assumed a human form. A girl with long, dark hair, piercing midnight-black eyes, and a flowing gown placed upon her.

She smiled. "Welcome. We are here to regain or give retribution to what has been taken from us: are people, our love, and power!" she smiled widely. "Yes, we are taking what is rightfully ours." The mixed crowd of half-bloods stirred, shifting and murmuring in hesitant tones. They were obviously unsure and not very informed. "Children, we are to storm Mount Olympus! But first- a mission: we are taking back one person we dearly love- Lia."

A shaky boy stepped up rather boldly, but his words were frail and insecure. His hands shook as if they were cursed to never stop flinching. A red, woolen sweater was placed over his thin frame. His thick, mousy brown hair bobbed up and down as he spoke frantically. "B-but, why? W-we want to l-live..."

Nyx scoffed and everyone flinched and shivered with fear. The boy would have collapsed had there not been others to support him. "Live? My poor child, we are not here to care for ourselves, but for demigods as a whole. We deserve what we have needed for centuries! You know what I mean, dear. Love. Respect."

Percy spoke up, his defiant nature consuming him. "And the gods have never given us that! A simple task! They take the ones we love," A tear escaped his eye. "And care for no one but themselves."

"That's right!" continued Thalia. "Fair? The gods have never been and never will be fair." A murmur of agreement passed between the groups of demigods. All of them were now nodding- up and down.

Nico surprisingly spoke. "We have been scorned, murdered, and even tortured by the gods! It's time they feel what we have been feeling for centuries!" The crowd was now full of morale.

Sudden wails of "War!" and "Justice!" were heard everywhere amongst them. Nyx's smile now gleamed dangerously and her dark, abysmal eyes were full of pleasure and delight.

"Now, we must save Lia. We shall go to Olympus- no easy task I am afraid- to save her. Who shall volunteer to go?"

Thalia, Percy, and Nico all raised hands; the mousy haired boy volunteered, too, his eyes now gleaming similarly to that of the goddess of night- an aura of bravery and strife.

Nyx raised her hand and all became as silent as the midnight atmosphere. "Then go my children. We shall bring back Lia and save those who are righteous at whatever cost."

All the demigods nodded. Percy, Thalia, and Nico went on one knee and bowed down to Nyx. The other followed their example.

"For Lia. To Nyx. For the better of us!"


	13. Chapter 13

** I am sorry for the delay, but chapter 13 is here now :)  
**

Traveling above ground made Percy scared. Dangers lay before him, and by going above ground, he was tempting the fate of his life.

He didn't want to die and waste his life. Not only did he have work to finish before he would ever die, but he wanted to live for Annabeth. His soulmate. Annabeth...

Oh gods. A moment of realization struck Percy that Annabeth was no longer there to call him names, or prod him along during reading. She wasn't there at all. Percy only seemed to feel like Annabeth was a presence gone, a lover gone, and an innocent that had vanished because of the greed and vindictiveness of the gods.

They had been betrayed by friends and strangers. But gods? Percy had always encouraged the gods to become faithful and honor-bounding. Now, their promises broke into dust. The promise that he and Annabeth would forever live in peace without the meddling of gods-no-that _all _the demigods would never be annoyed once more- the words were like a song: strong only when there is meaning, and frail with no will.

So many years ago, the gods had said so themselves: "There is no use. It has been in our nature for too long. We can never change." But Percy had refused to acknowledge the fact, and now Annabeth lay dead, washed off the shores of Camp Half-Blood, and into the ocean that gently lapped her into its realms.

Percy could feel her body sinking into the ocean. Her body- once so alive and warm, but now so lifeless and cold- weightlessly sunk into the abysmal depths of the ocean, waiting to be collected by a minion of Hades.

A tear fell escaped Percy's eye and fell down his cheek. An arm wrapped around him.

He looked up to see his only friends with him in the capsule that would take them to save Lia from the cruel gods.

Yes, Thalia and Nico, his constants. But who was this other boy?

"Who are you?" rasped Percy's hoarse voice.

"M-me?"

"Of course, you." Thalia stared at the opposite wall. Her face was blank and her eyes were void of all emotions.

"I am Andrew."

Nico frowned. "Why are you here?"

Percy nodded. He didn't need to talk to make known that he agreed with Nico's question.

"Well, I am a son of Apate. In ancient times, she was one of the released spirits of Pandora."

Thalia caught her breath. "Okay."

"Apate wad related to all the- bad gods. The god of old age, suffering, doom, strife... I don't know if I'll do a single thing of use to you guys."

Nico started to say something, but Percy hushed him with a single raising movement of his arm. "Continue. P-please."

Andrew nodded. "But- anyways- Apate was the goddess of lying, deceit, and- in Roman times- trickery."

Andrew tried for a shaky laugh. "Which is funny, because I have never been able to trust anyone. Anything I say comes out as a lie. It's impossible to stop! My voice is plagued. Only Lia can stop these lies, and only for certain times, but those times never last. Never."

Thalia and Nico each eyed Percy. A moment of understanding and anxiety passed between them.

Even as a child of tricks himself, he was caught in the center of lies and lying, and nothing was ever true to him.

"Lia." Nico averted his eyes from the sorry sight of Andrew. His shoulders sagged with misery. "Why was she so special to you?"

"She's my friend."

The word came out in a longing tone. He clearly wanted to believe the meaning of the word to be more. But maybe it actually was.

A thump sounded around the capsule; it screeched to a sudden stop.

Percy, with a firm look upon his face, turned towards his friends, who had the same look plastered onto their faces.

One after another, the other three demigods all nodded. Nico, then Thalia, and then Andrew. All of them agreed on the thing that they most feared. The thing that made them shiver whenever in a deep thought.

Everyone thought the same thing: we are going to face this war masked with cruelty and be the face of death itself.


	14. Chapter 14

Standing atop the earth again, his feet placed on the hard ground, was an odd feeling. Nico had fought on this land before for the safety and security of the gods. But he never realized until now how simple and flimsy his life was in the eyes of a god.

Compared to the gods, Nico was disposable and unnecessary. No one ever needed him. Not anybody. Never. The gods obviously would have replied with a silent "yes". They never needed him to survive or had wanted him to; in fact, there were so many others who shared the same fates as he did. Mistakes. Tiny and insignificant mistakes made out of greed and foolishness.

Yes, yes. Nico loved the sound of that, the words seemed to roll of Nico's tongue whenever he said it. The gods were absolutely foolish and greedy. They made it sound like the Titans were power-hungry barbarians, when they themselves were not so different from the actual Titans. Never did the gods learn from their horrid and tragic mistakes- perhaps out of their own nature, their obstinacy, or (once again) greed.

He never wanted to see a god again. If it meant he would have never been born, he would make a world without gods to ruin an innocent's life. A deal like that would be a certain blessing to every suffering demigod; a freedom from a harsh life. They would have been saved, but life would never be like that, and he would have to endure the rest of his life to make things right. To make them how they should be: fair, equal, and beautiful.

New York City's sounds and livelihood was blaring around Nico. He could hear people bustling past him hurriedly, speeding off to complete a task or whatnot. A group of teenage girls passed by with shopping bags and chattered loudly to one another. A man in a black suit shuffled down the road; he held a surly expression.

Surprisingly, the arbitrary crowds of by-standers seemed unfazed by the sight of several teenagers climbing out of the middle of the street.

Perhaps it was the Mist- the magical force which caused the mortal mind to believe in the "most likely" cause of things, which caused rather peculiar things to appear otherwise.

Indeed, it is definitely the Mist. Thought Nico. A fetid stench filled his nose, and he began to wheeze. An odd- yet familiar- feeling crept close to him. He could tell the feeling had always been hovering close to him, but now, standing here in New York, the odd feeling was growing closer and becoming more haunting than he had ever hoped it would be.

His jaw slackened as his face became gaunter and more grotesque looking. Eyes hungrily taking in every detail, he exhaled. The presence seemed to exit, but Nico couldn't shake the feeling that it was still there. Beside him. Watching and wanting.

Thalia, Percy, and Andrew all gave each other a wary look. One person after another, all their eyes met Nico's. Their looks held his for several seconds; the blast of New York City never fazed the onlookers.

Nico saw their eyes. They were different than their normal shades of brilliant colors. A mute tone was enveloping their irises. No longer did the bright sea green beam in Percy's eyes. A glimmering and startling blue didn't bore frighteningly into Nico's own eyes. All their eyes seemed muted, as if- somehow- their vigorous color had evanesced as they came skywards to the City.

Sliding a finger out of his pocket, Nico slowly guided his finger towards Percy. As soon as his finger and Percy met, Percy immediately regained his vibrant color and jerked forward. He had barely kept his balance, for he had rocked back and forth for a while.

The others, too, regained the color and swapped the eerie, stoic features to their normal selves. Same scowls. Same defiant toughness.

"Let's walk to Olympus." Thalia looked at her comrades and shoved the hood of her jacket onto her jet black hair.

Nico nodded, the others followed his example and walked after Thalia.

Thalia led the demigods on the path to Olympus. The rest of them walked behind her. As they walked, people cleared their paths and completed evaded them. Perhaps it was because of the fierce looks the demigods had pasted onto themselves, but Nico thought it was the fact that Thalia had influenced the Mist earlier.

Their footsteps echoed loudly throughout the city. It was very odd, especially in such a city as the vibrant, blaring New York City. Nico noticed himself deafening; the sound seemed fainter. Perhaps it was only himself, because the other demigods were still walking down the blacktop asphalt in a stiff manner, their hoodies shoved over their heads, as if to disguise themselves as gangly mortals.

They all kept walking. Deeper and deeper into the city they went. Every now and then, Nico would see and hear a mortal's car, swerving past him, headlights breaking through the fog. It made Nico jump; the others only turned their heads slightly to recognize the sudden noise and flashing yellow light. It was if they had never noticed the car.

As they reached the center of the city, things began to twist Nico to his own fear as he saw his vision fog up: the path before him was now gone, as well as everything else he could have seen only a minute before, which is to say, nothing. Nico could barely sense the presence of his friends, surrounding him closely, creating a sort of barrier around him- as if they were to protect him from a... Thing.

The scene was unchanging, Nico standing in the midst of his friends through the thick fog. Nothing was heard but the sound of the heartbeats exchanged throughout Nico's poor spectrum of hearing. Nothing else was detectable, but even if Nico was able to, he would have prefered not to at all.

Nico started to chew on his lip. Anxiety, fear, pressure. The scene was so eerie!

_Smack!_

Nico's eyes widened in panic; he was too afraid to jump up in a worried manner. His muscles seemed paralyzed, and his body was stiff. As he turned his head from a gap he had found to view the mist from, not daring to move his body, he nearly screamed, but the strength to utter a single syllable had left Nico altogether.

His friends- Thalia, Percy, Andrew- all lay limp upon the asphalt beneath Nico's feet. A chill drifted up his back as Nico envisioned a sort of horrid monster daring him to fight to only lay lifeless as his friends did at that very still moment. But nothing hid behind Nico, nothing appeared to scare him or console him. There was just that odd mist floating before Nico.

He then checked the vitals of Thalia, his hand now more limp than it was before when he saw the wave of mist creep towards him. Cautiously, Nico slid his index finger against Thalia's carotid artery. A faint pulse knocked against Nico's knuckle, so he removed his finger from Thalia's neck to place onto Andrew's neck.

Andrew, too, was conscious, but the information of his friends' ill condition frightened him beyond belief. Never had Nico experienced such a great fear as to witness his friends die... At his fault.

Sighing, his eyes began to close. Perhaps it was out of exhaustion, but the need to perform an actual nap was more and more enticing within each second.

_Smack._

Nico's eyelids flipped open. His pulsed quickened and his adrenaline grew. Fully awake with his demigod senses, Nico was sure he would be able to sense any strange beings within the dense cloud formations.

Had the day been any creepier, Nico would have died of fear. He tugged at his hooded jacket as the mist became tainted with a sullen grayish-green hue and began to emit a horrifying stench of fresh corpses and poisoned blood.

Corpses. Nico knew he should recognize the smell from some memory. He had been to the Underworld many a times, had he not? Perhaps it was because was too intoxicated to ever remember such a thing, but no matter what he did- shifting cautiously, brandishing his Stygian sword- he was never able to have any remembrances of any skirmish with such an eerie vapor choking his supplies of fresh air.

"W-who-?" stuttered Nico, his fear grasping hold of him.

A piercing scream filled the air; it sounded like shattering glass and a sharp chalkboard sound. The sound kept ringing through Nico's ears. It kept repeating, over and over again.

Nico yelped and covered his ears. He pressed his eyelids closed. The fact that his friends lay around him seemed of matter now.

The sound ceased and Nico slowly began to reopen his eyes. When his eyes were fully opened, he saw a horrible sight and the sound blared in his ears. Nico quickly shut his eyes once more and grabbed his sword.

The thing cackled. "Fear is looming over you, is it not?"

Another voice spoke. "Yes, yes! A child of Hades with no bravery?"

"Truly you would not be scared of us!" screeched the third voice with delight.

Nico forced his eyes open to face the creatures. His face morphed into a disgusted look. He cowered in fear.

The things looked like rabid beasts. Their eye sockets were empty and hollow and blood was smeared over the empty sockets; their frazzled, mangled hair wrapped around their thin shoulders. Milky gray skin wrapped itself tightly around their bones in the most horrifying way.

Their frames were frail looking. With their ill-looking frames and hunger-filled stare, they were what Nico would have envisioned a zombie as. Beings that seemed you forever, only for the benefit of tearing you slowly, scraping you, as you suffer a painful ending.

Their eyes turned slowly to look at Nico. He raised his sword in response to their movement, daring them to advance.

"What are you doing here?"

The middle ghost passed through Nico. Its ghostly tattered robes lapped Nico's feet as the creature's own head passed through his. Shivers- cold and haunting- were sent up his back and up his spine. The child of Hades gasped as his head screamed in pain, wailing at him to lie down just as his friends were.

"We prey on your fear, Di Angelo," said the demon lady. Silver blood dripped down onto Nico's cheek as she hovered above him.

The blood burned like the River Styx on an opened wound. He let his finger creep across his face to his cheek where the fluid slowly slid down his face. It slid onto his finger, and Nico brought down his finger to examine the blood.

The blood was now infused with his own crimson red. It swirled into an awful mixture that reminded Nico of a puce colored vomit. Obviously, the creature had made Nico even more afraid.

"Keres," piped up the remaining demon, floating off to the side. "We are the Keres, of the many spirits released by the girl, Pandora."

"The Death Mist."

It nodded and its eyes momentarily reappeared, and Nico was glad that the majority of the time it did not have its eyes placed inside those hollow sockets.

"Let this be a warning to you. Never underestimate your enemies. We outsmart you. Always.

We always win. And your friends shall surely die."

"N-no. They will never-r-r," Nico threatened to say, but his voice had betray him and had been replaced by fear.

"And we have clever games to play."

A swift breeze passed through Nico's face. The Keres were gone, but he feared the memory would never diminish.

Maybe he would die. Perhaps at fault for his own friends' death, too. Maybe he was meant to die in shame.


	15. Chapter 15

As the demigods' slowly began to awaken, they knew from the small amount of consciousness inside of them that they were on the brink of death. But even being at deaths' door, they did not fully regain their alert behavior.

Alarmingly, a sharp burst of light seeped through their eyelids. All four of the demigods groaned in despair. They all certainly had an overwhelming amount of rights to even scream if they had wished to.

Percy's eyelids drooped over his eyes in a drunken manner. His left leg was split open; blood gushed out from the open wound onto a blood stained cloth that lay on the floor. It seemed as if the damage was too much to fix.

Thalia and Andrew both had injuries to their shoulders. A crevice was buried deep into their skin, as if a blade had pierced through their skin and removed a chunk of the flesh that had once rested on their bones. The sight was absolutely horrifying.

On the other hand, Nico, who instead lay on a deeply coffee stained blue couch, was in a form of "eternal shock". His hands were frozen in an odd position, as well as the rest of his body. Eyes that had finally opened were rolled back into the inner parts of his head; only the whites of his eyes showed, and even then, his eyes didn't move for anything.

"What was it whispered? I knew not well myself." The man in the room muttered the sequence over and over again. Sometimes they were morphed into rapid Greek. Sometimes what he said was never really words at all. He wore a dark mustard cloak; the hood was pulled over his head so that it was nearly impossible to see his face. Even if one were to view the man head on, his face would be easily mistaken for a shadow.

For a second, the man looked towards the window. A bright beam of mauve began to seep through the sordid windows and spread into the barren room. The faint light added a sense of hope into the depressed scene.

"Perhaps it was something about the heat of the sun," he whispered. The sun was beginning to fill the room. Light provided a useful aid for seeing the man more clearly. His lips and mouth moved to form the lines he was reciting; the words came out clear and elegant.

Pressing his hand against Percy's forehead, he turned his head, just as the sun began to reveal his face. Though the attempt of hiding his face was rather useless, as Percy wasn't able to see for the while, the man smiled with the reassurance that his identity was kept secret.

He continued with his actions: pressing his palms against the foreheads of the child that lay so lifeless and apathetic. The actions did, however, begin to influence the recovery of the demigods. Their struggled breaths became heaved breaths.

Frozen limbs began to assume their natural orientations and movement.

The mysterious man sat on a couch that must have once been brilliant ochre, but was now a faded brown with rips within the shredded and maimed fabric. The single seat couch overlooked the small dilapidated room. He sat cross-legged on the couch, watching the demigods begin to stir and sit up with their hands cupping their brutal injuries (that were now healing at an extremely fast pace) placed at random on their bodies.

Percy, being the first to recover, spoke with his left hand plastered to his left eye. Both were swollen red. "Who- are you?" he questioned. He reached an arm out to prop himself upwards, but failed to his greatest dismay. The man, traipsing back to Percy (he had been at Thalia's side), raised his arm momentarily, and then repositioned it on a freshly moistened cloth.

The man stayed mute. His head slanted to the left, then right. Anonymity was a sacred thing to the man; a hush whisper would have seemed a crime at the moment. No sounds filled the air except the slow breaths of the four demigods.

Cloak still placed atop his shoulders, he dipped his head and began a cacology of incantations. The sound was beautiful and melodious- any fool would admit that-, but his voice sounded dull a bleak. A song that lacked charisma and jubilance; an ever-motionless pool of water. The song lacked the joy that everyone had been deprived of.

No one had to see his face to understand his emotions- or any demigods' face to realize the situation. They had been torn from each other. And maybe forever.

"That man... What did he look like?"

Percy's eyes didn't swerve to face Nico, who sat to the left of him. His eyes stayed affixed at the wall before him; its eggshell white wallpaper had been torn and (with the little strips of paper remaining) was smudged charcoal grey at several points. Even when Nico spoke with more vigor and raised his voice, Percy raised up little effort to respond to Nico; a rare nodding system eventually began to develop.

Thalia played with her silver earring between her fingers. Its curved figure was smooth against her archer's fingers. She removed her eyes from the spot Percy had been surveying (there seemed to be nothing of interest there). "What happened?"

Andrew looked towards Percy in a worried manner. "Did anyone injure you?"

"He sang several songs," Percy confirmed. He looked into the eyes of his fellow friends. It was a calming, yet serious moment.

"Like what?" inquired Nico.

"I don't know. But they were- I don't know."

Andrew frowned. The sun had finally broken through its restraints and brilliant beams of sunlight burned against the room's interior. "Him."

When he spoke, it wasn't a question. The man stood behind them. The door had been recently opened by the man with the mustard-yellow cloak. He strode to ratty lounge and sat down peacefully. His legs crossed; he folded his arms. Shadows from the cloak that hung atop his head cast dark shadows against his face. Even as the demigods looked at him from up close, they could have never seen a thing.

Andrew jerked himself upright. "Who are you?" His hand was placed where his sword currently was strapped to his side. Though the sudden movement was almost a sure sign of recovery, for Andrew himself jerked so quickly, it was definitely not. He crumpled to the floor, out of breath and out of strength.

Thalia, Nico, and Percy cast short, scared and panicked glances to one another. Percy began to speak: "We are demigods." He shut his eyes tightly. "We want to know who you are. If you don't tell us, I won't hesitate to attack." Percy stood.

Slowly, his hand instinctively slid to his pocket, where his pen- Anaklusmos- was located. Percy's muscles tensed as his fingers reached his pen; he gripped it firmly. While his hand began to escape the pocket, his face blanked almost immediately. His once sturdy and strong arms began to lose their strength; they lost their positions and fell.

Percy body crumpled to the floor with a thump; Thalia and Andrew barely caught him. His body had fallen in a haphazardly manner- like his bones had lost their hard qualities.

Thalia took a short breath as she caught Percy by his arm- Andrew the other. She bit her tongue as she felt salty tears beginning to flow from her eyes and slip down her cheeks. Almost immediately after she laid Percy down, she shouted: "What's wrong with you! Hades!"

Nico watched as his Thalia began to slide her hand across Percy's throat, checking his pulse. She nervously murmured scared intimidations throughout the whole process, Nico saw.

It was an amazing feat really- with the head of the hooded figure fixated on him. It was much more than a fright than Nico had even imagined. Maybe he had thought wrongly.

"Speak to me. The halls of the cursed and wretched reach thy soul through the channeled power of the Big Three."

It was honestly true. With the frail words of Nico, power coursed through each syllable. The man flinched- just barely.

Thalia- who was kneeled over Percy, kept her palms placed on Percy and her eyes closed- spoke. "Unheard psalms breathe through the drowned in dead." Her face was extremely pale and her teeth chattered uncontrollably. She looked toward Nico- whose own face contrasted Thalia's.

His face looked much more divine and hollow than Thalia had ever seen him. Shadows played across his face as the light from the window began to cede mysteriously. His eyes looked darker than usual; they seemed black. An aura of strength and maturity reflected off of Nico. He was using a form of- magic?

Bones that were piled throughout the whole room began to shake nervously as Nico stood with his fists clutched; his fists tightened and untightened spasmodically. Blood stains that almost reflected the pure death of the room began to reform and stream down the faded white walls.

Andrew almost seemed fearful of Nico. He looked pale and his body tensed as his eyes flitted cautiously over Percy's frozen corpse.

The man raised a hand; the light returned as well as Nico's normal face. He lifted his dark cloak from his head and it fell onto his shoulders within the second. The dark and gloom from the cloak disappeared from the cloak and was replaced by a shining golden rippling fabric.

The thread seemed to be made from the days of sunlight and the cloak morphed into a classic Greek chiton.

"Calling upon a god is a dangerous task godling. Intimidating one isn't smart either."

Thalia stood. Her eyes were full of befuddlement and she looked as though she were about to faint. "Are you Apollo-?"

The man smiled and spread his arms. He almost seemed ghostly, but he obviously was not Hades.

He smiled warmly towards her while Thalia pursed her lips in frustration of her sudden outburst. "Hardly. I am Asclepius: god of healing." He paused before continuing. "I am, however, flattered by your compliment."

Thalia frowned and a scowl reappeared on her face as she blushed, full of embarrassment. Thankfully, Andrew spoke up. "What do you want?" he demanded. Of course, he had been silent for such a long, but now it seemed rather a large surprise to see silent Andrew speaking once more; he was a bit of a shy character.

Asclepius stared at the torn wallpaper opposite of him. "I have come to help- but only momentarily. You see, I am here because your presence calls me. I should be- dead? Faded? Zeus killed me and I was put to live on the stars forever. I believe some of you have experienced a death in the stars before?"

Nico and Thalia both looked angrily towards the god. How dare he remind them of their friend Zoe Nightshade's death? That was beyond the point of murder by demigods, but he was already a spirit of some sort.

"Then why are you here? Why did you have to kill Percy?" Thalia stamped her foot and the force of it shook the room. Some of the ceiling crumpled and fell. Lightning sparks flickered through her hair as lightning began to shake the room eerily. She brought her fist to punch the god as more tears streamed down her face; it was simply deflected by his godly force.

"I merely come when I am called by- ah, that doesn't need to be disclosed, does it?" he replied cryptically. "But you see, my form is much too frail to do much; I must tell you one thing though, demigods. I will tell you that later-"

"That doesn't answer anything!" exclaimed Andrew.

"But for now, Percy is being momentarily put to sleep. I need not have someone destroying me and sending me to the stars before my duty is finished, am I right?"

Thalia, Nico, and Andrew turned their backs to Asclepius and spoke in hushed tones to one another. At times, they would gesture to him or Percy. Their meeting broke when Nico rolled his eyes and waved the conversation with a slight movement of his hand.

Nico started, his voice quavered. "We just need to save Lia and plan for war."

Asclepius looked amused; he had on a playful smile. "Ah, but war has almost already broken. You will see shortly. For now, I- or perhaps my sender- shall tell you a hint that will help you on your quest." He stood from his position and dug his hands into his pockets. "Well, you must go seek help from your friends. That is all. Any ques-?"

"Wait." Andrew nearly touched the clothing of the man to cease his departure. Of course, that would be deadly. The movement caught Asclepius's eye easily.

"Nico, Andrew, and I-" Thalia pointed to herself confidently as she took deep breaths to control her crying. "Don't have any friends except for one another and the ones back at Nyx's. If you're talking-" She started stuttering and her eyes looked weary without the gift of immortality adjusting her form. "About home. Should we go back then?"

The man laughed; it filled the room and mocked the demigods. "Hardly. Have you forgotten of your friends already?"

"I don't understand!" Nico and Andrew screamed in unison.

"Seek the fire and oracle for help."

"Leo?" Thalia asked with astonishment.

"And Rachel?" Nico added.

He nodded in conformation. "You will find them in the forests of- well, somewhere.

"That helps..." grumbled Andrew through his closed teeth.

"I will transport you there for now. You'll receive instructions later on." He gave a firm look to the demigods- and then Percy. "You best grab hold of your friend."

Asclepius breathed an incantation. Tendrils of wispy smoke twirled around the demigods.

The room turned bright at that exact moment; it darkened again. Asclepius had left them.

It was a sick and turbulent experience. Perhaps they would have recoiled at the revolting experience, but the received unconscious as they hit the ground within seconds of their departure.

Maybe someone would find them again, but through the forest with thick trees and wind that blew overwhelming amounts of leaves and debris, it seemed nothing was increasing their chances of survival.


	16. Chapter 16

Percy awoke to trembling hands that pierced into his skin. He felt a burning feeling delving into his head and hands, flowing steadily into his heart and lungs.

What he saw, terrified him. None other than Rachel Elizabeth Dare kneeled by the edge of his bed, hands gripping his left arm. She wore an odd and mangled headdress that had intricate (but faded) pictures of nature- leaves and dancing nymphs- and images of murders and frightful and downright repulsive scenes that reminded Percy of the brutal myths of the gods.

The little hair that escaped the holds of the headdress was frizzier than was usual; her head was lowered and the mane of fiery red hair and the headdress with the golden etchings was the only thing that Percy could see of Rachel.

Percy sat up. His friends- Thalia, Nico, and Andrew- were all in a form of rigor mortis on the floor. Their bodies took on a weird position, but their chests lifted every second or so, which gave Percy reassurance that he didn't have to lose another person.

"Rachel. Could I see your face?" asked Percy. He honestly didn't know why he had said such a thing.

She hesitated. "No," Rachel decided. She lowered her head even more, but her grip on Percy's arm grew tighter. A bruise was sure to appear on Percy's arm.

"Why not? Seeing your face would certainly delight me. I don't have many chances to see my friends' faces any more, do I? Come on. Make my day," Percy said. His alluring tone was powerful. It was like charmspeak.

That was when she began to cry. It was horrible sobbing. She never seemed to want to stop; even as Percy spoke comforting tones she never decided to show her face to Percy or to cease her tears.

"Fine." Percy retreated to his original position of rest and began to lower his eyelids. Perhaps he would get a sliver of luck and dream about his loss of Annabeth. It was time for him to remember her again... And mourn for her sparkling gray eyes and soft, curls of blonde hair.

"Percy!" Rachel shrieked. Her hand rested on his shoulder as Percy huffed in either frustration or stress. "You don't want to see me now. Or ever. I don't want to see anyone!" She turned away from her position and removed her hand from its purchase on Percy's shoulder. "Never again..."

"No." Percy shifted into a crisscross sitting position.

Rachel had removed the headdress from her head and had placed it beside her where it lay limp and fragile. The long and tattered skirts of gray cotton gently rested on the floor around her. She hesitated on turning around to look at Percy's bright green eyes; she, however, refused to meet them.

"I've waited forever, you know," she said, furiously rubbing her hands against her torn and multicolored jeans. "You-" she gulped. "Okay?"

Percy nodded. "Yeah." He clumsily scooted toward the edge of the worn bed on which he sat on and tapped Rachel's shoulder gently. "Rach-"

She froze and her movements stiffened. "Percy..." Her back turned and Percy saw her eyes. They urgently flickered from a bright green to a milky and faded grey. Her face was slack and she moaned several sentences as her face lost its color. "Report to the gods! Traitor! Traitor!"

Rachel lashed at Percy with her fingernails and scraped Percy's arms. He winced as he noticed trails of blood falling from his arm. She gripped her thin hands around Percy's neck and began to squeeze until Percy's eyes turned lifeless as he gasped for air and struggled against Rachel with all his little energy.

"What. The. Hades!" Percy wheezed a he finally freed himself of Rachel's grip and had grabbed both of Rachel's wrists. He took deep breaths as he saw Rachel struggle against him and eventually lose strength; she was just Rachel Elizabeth Dare again.

Her eyes flickered once more and Percy punched her before anything could happen to him or to Andrew, Thalia, and Nico, who lay on the ground behind him inside the dusty cabin. Rachel collapsed with a thud.

Percy sighed with relief and knelt down to Thalia. "Wakey, wakey." He shook Thalia gently and her eyelids opened to reveal those same electric blue eyes that Percy had seen on his first day of meeting her. The startling blue actually comforted him.

She closed her eyes once more. "Mmphmhph."

He laughed and patted her hair was currently covering her face. "C'mon. We need to get some business done."

Thalia opened one eye and eventually gave into Percy's demands, straightening her hair by using her fingers, gently combing through her short tangles, and sitting up and stretching her back with her arms spread while giving a hearty yawn.

Percy stood and offered a hand to her. Normally, Thalia would have smacked Percy's face and stood on her own, but she was much too sleepy to think about such things; Percy felt the same way, too.

Thalia rubbed her eyes. "Rachel?" she asked, confusion creeping upon her face.

Percy nodded as he unconsciously rubbed his neck, which was now a deep scarlet color. He brought Thalia to the corner of the one roomed building; the door was visible from this point. They sat facing one another with their legs crossed as they sat down.

"Thalia, we have-"

She shook her head and interrupted Percy. "You tell me what happened first." It was a command. She presses her slim fingers against Percy's throat and Percy winced as he immediately swatted her hand away. Thalia tilted her head skeptically as Percy gave Thalia a shaky smile and waved coyly. Shrugging, she stood up and began to walk towards the shaky body of Rachel Elizabeth Dare.

"Since you are obviously fine," started Thalia, taking a step with each word she spoke. She stuck her hands into her pockets. "You won't need this beautiful bar of ambrosia-" she raised her hand from her pocket, brandishing some bright golden ambrosia "-I'll stick it right back into my pocket. I mean, it's not like I would care if some god like... oh, Asclepius, knocked you dead. I mean, pssh! Who would care?"

Percy pouted. "I would. Ambrosia." He showed off his puppy eyes and Thalia sighed, tossing the ambrosia at Percy as she continued pacing towards the red-haired girl.

"So..." Thalia frowned as she sat beside Rachel; her knees barely touched the pale and freckled arm of Rachel. Her head swayed to look at Percy, who was busily gobbling up the needed ambrosia. "What exactly happened to this girl over here? I mean... Oh my gods, she looks..." Thalia bit her lip and shivered as she inched closer towards the other girl to feel her pulse.

The green of the boy's eyes flickered from vivid hues and dulls shades of olive as he began to tell his thoughts and accounts of what had happened concerning him and Rachel. He left nothing out and his tone stayed serious the whole time, other than a few murmurings of jokes (which he told rather dryly) to lighten up the situation, for the retelling of the story was rather eerie; Thalia would chuckle with little emotion to the jokes and urge Percy to continue telling her as they delved deeper into the situation's scenes. Percy took shaky breaths throughout the whole story and kept his eyes affixed at the far wall of the small cabin.

Thalia started to bring out medical items as Percy iterated his tale: bandages, isopropyl alcohol, ointments. She wondered if she would be able to bring the life back into the oracle. Of course, the oracle was still alive- a faint pulse was able to be felt at the carotid artery-, but would Thalia be able to heal the girl? It had been long since recent that Thalia had ever practiced the use of mortal remedies; she prayed to Apollo, but not to Asclepius, for she feared the work of that god, and his works that would cause the malpractice on her friend.

Percy wiped strands of black hair from Thalia's eyes as she gently poured some liquids onto Rachel's wounds; he clutched bundles of bandages in his other hand. Sweat poured down his face as he grimaced, while Thalia continued her work with hardly a straight face.

It was- of course- tedious work that neither of the two conscious demigods enjoyed. They did have small help form the fact that the oracle's spirit tumbled inside Rachel; it supported her spirit and kept her alive... but for how long?

A steady pulse had gained over the period and Thalia and Percy gave one another small smiles of satisfaction. They had finished the work and had not needed any help from the other two slumbering demigods.

"Should we wake them up?"

Thalia nodded, but then smiled sweetly as she caught sight of the sleeping demigods. "I don't think so. They'll waken when they need to or whatever." She took seven steps and opened the door, peering through the small crack of the opening, and turned back towards Percy. "You think we ought to stay here or-?"

"Naw, it'd be best if we're gonna to stay here for the night. It seems safe enough... I suppose." Percy slouched against a wall of the cabin and eventually fell down to a position in which his back was leant against the wall and his legs rested against the rough, boarded floor. "So, now what?"

Thalia went over to Percy; they sat next to each other in the same manner. "I really don't know." She cast a look towards Nico, Andrew, and then Rachel. "We wait here I suppose. 'Til any of them wake up any ways. There really isn't much to do here."

Percy nodded. "Well, what did you expect? A music player or something?" He playfully nudged Thalia's shoulder.

"Harrumph." Her face darkened. "Thanks."

"For what?"

"Well, you woke up again. That's more than enough for me. I was really... scared." She lowered her head and sighed.

"What, oh. No problem. I will always wake up- for you and everybody else. You really shouldn't be scared unless... Ha! You're a coward!" Percy chuckled at the thought and pointed fingers towards a grumpy Thalia.

"Haha," Her tone was sarcastic. "But I mean it. I don't think I would ever live, knowing that you and..." She caught her words before they were uttered and she continued to speak. "That you were dead; but that won't happen."

Percy sat up. "Never will."

The night crept up from behind the cabin. They never saw the sunlight fade, but the thick night protected them and they never actually needed the knowledge of the sun's fading.

They awoke simultaneously as Andrew and Nico towered over them, shaking the other's shoulders.

"You woke up," said Nico dryly, keeping up a "cheerful" facade by "smiling".

Andrew grunted as he inched away to be by the side of Rachel as she sputtered blood over her cheeks as she coughed.

Everyone else rushed to be by the side of Rachel as her eyes opened to reveal her bright and vivid eyes as she grew conscious. Her hands and legs shook as she attempted to stand up, but she staggered down; Andrew caught her and tilted her against the wall behind her. Rachel reached an arm to wipe the blood from her mouth; she then shot her hand towards Percy and gripped his arm fiercely.

Percy knew not how to respond. Whether to retaliate with force or remain still, he decided with the latter.

"We must go! We must go to the child of fire! He is our only hope!" she sputtered. Her hands let go of Percy and she leaned her body against the wall.

"Why him?" asked Nico as he continued to eye her suspiciously.

Rachel crossed her arms. "What, is the Oracle somehow unrelibale now?"

Thalia scowled and clenched her fists, ready to punch. "Yes! You almost killed Percy! We have- Ugh! Why should we trust you when you nearly killed Percy!"

Rachel glumly sat up and rested her head on her hands as the demigods watched her closely. She looked into each of their eyes sadly.

"Because I am not an eidolon."


	17. Chapter 17

I'm sorry for not updating in forever. Things have gotten very busy for PhantomWhispers, and we will not be able to continue this story until this summer.

Again, we are extremely sorry.


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